My Ameraucana is laying soft eggs! need help

[hmccull]

My hen has been laying soft eggs for 5 days now! I have been crushing her eggs and feeding them back (hard shelled ones she has previously laid) to her along with the other 2 hens! She just started laying about 3 weeks ago! I just recently picked up some oyster shell to add to their diet as well! That was 2 days ago!

Is there anything else I need to be doing? I let my chickens free range most of the day! Is it possible she is not getting enough nutrition from her food? I feed all my hens Nutrena layer feed! She acts very normal to me! So I really do not know what is going on!

This is my first time having backyard chickens so any advice would be great! Thanks

 

[Den in Penn]

Give it some time for the calcium to build up in her system.

 

[hmccull]

I figured that would be my answer, but just in case I had to ask!

 

[Den in Penn]

I will add if it continues you can try giving Vitamin D to her.

 

[hmccull]

Hello I am back again!!! So my Ameraucana started off with laying nice olive green to blue eggs! I put all 3 of my girls on oyster shell and I give them back their own egg shells! What I am not understanding is why my Ameraucana is still having problems! She went back to laying hard shelled eggs after about a week of laying soft shelled eggs, then she laid a couple hard ones, then some more soft shelled eggs! She finally laid another hard shelled egg sometime last week, but now she is laying absolutely nothing, even though she lays in her nest everyday as if she is laying! I am looking for evidence of another soft egg, but find nothing! I know she is a different breed then the other 2 I have, but the other 2 lay eggs everyday with no problem! So her not laying is completely confusing me! She still acts fine, and gets along with the other 2 very well! They free range most of the day! I am just stumped! All 3 of my girls are less then a year old! I just got them at the end of march! This is my first time with chickens so any extra advice would really be nice right now! Is this just the Ameraucana breed? Also where do I get vitamin D for her if that is what she is lacking? I did notice that all 3 of my girls seem to be wanting the nest at the same time! could that have something to do with it?

 

[Den in Penn]

You can use the vitamins for humans or ask at the feed store if they have vitamins for chickens. Ameraucanas are not a production breed. taking time off is not that unusual.

 

[hmccull]

Ok thank you! Maybe I should complain about Bob more often!! she finally layed an egg today! ha ha! Glad to know this is normal for an Ameraucana! Although I kind of figured because she seems completely healthy to me!